View photos of the edible and medicinal plant Malva parviflora (Mallow), profiled in Medicinal Plants of the American Southwest, Sonoran Desert Food Plants, and Wild Edible Plants of Texas.

A passage from Medicinal Plants of the American Southwest:

Mallow has several distinct medicinal effects practically identical to Marshmallow, Hollyhock, and Globemallow. The tea is soothing to a dry and irritating cough. Bronchial irritation, present typically in the beginning or ending stages of a lung cold or bronchitis, is equally soothed.

View photos of the edible and medicinal plant, Malva neglecta (Mallow), profiled in Medicinal Plants of the American Southwest and the Wild Edible Series: California: Vol 1, Kansas, New Mexico: Vol 1, Oklahoma, Sonoran, Texas: Vol 1, and others.

A passage from Medicinal Plants of the American Southwest:

Mallow has several distinct medicinal effects practically identical to Marshmallow, Hollyhock, and Globemallow. The tea is soothing to a dry and irritating cough. Bronchial irritation present typically in the beginning or ending stages of a lung cold or bronchitis is equally soothed.

A passage from Wild Edible Plants of New Mexico (Volume 1):

Encountered throughout middle to upper elevations (4500’–8500’), Mallow will almost always be found in disturbed soils: dirt roadsides, walkway edges, old grades, fallow fields, etc.

A passage from Wild Edible Plants of Texas (Volume 1):

The leaves, being the most palatable part of Mallow, are simply eaten raw or mixed with other greens and eaten as a salad. Really though, they are better boiled or steamed.